"Organized Religion" Rant

"If there were no sheep, there would be no organized religion"

Oh really?  This was my response...

The phrase “organized religion” annoys me. It’s bandied about so freely no one even thinks twice about what it actually means – only the connotations and stigmas that have become attached to it. What would “unorganized” religion look like – the guy on the corner ranting that the end is upon us? Would it be a flash mob? Would it even be religion? Human beings naturally seek order; our brains are wired for it. It’s how we discern patterns and why we’re able to write and read. Thus, when we find a pattern such as something we have in common, we organize. One could as easily say “organized politics” in reference to the Democratic or Republican parties, or “organized employment” in reference to unions. But, no, and somehow “organized religion” has become this scary thing that all men should fear (more than political parties and unions ?!). In such a dysfunctional, disorganized world, people naturally look for something organized to comfort them. Some look to their government, some look to their jobs, some look to their churches, and some just keep looking. The existence of “organized religion” is not incumbent upon the existence of “sheep.” (Sheep are smelly, stupid, and prone to wandering off. Who would want them anyway?!) The human being’s need to find organization and pattern predicates a tendency to find others with whom he has something in common. Therefore, even if there were no churches, no papacy, nor formal systems with which religions as we know them are organized, people would still gather together and share and express together their beliefs. Even atheists gather to express what they believe. A religion can be defined as a specific fundamental set of beliefs or practices agreed upon by a group of people. It doesn’t even have to be something regarding faith in a supreme power. This country was founded on a specific fundamental set of beliefs agreed upon by a group of people and those are set down in the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution of the United States, and The Bill of Rights. Er go, The United States of America is a religion – an organized one (despite politicians’ attempts to the contrary). Tell me again. What’s wrong with organized religion?